PHILIPPA ASHER

Born and educated in England, Philippa worked in London for twenty years (in the Royal Ballet Company’s and English National Ballet’s Education Departments), in media (working with music and film clients) and then as an Ashtanga yoga teacher. She met Mahesh in Srirangapatna, South India in 2006 and the vision of creating an idyllic sanctuary in nature, for the practise of Ashtanga yoga and crafts, was born.

Philippa is one of a few Ashtanga yoga practitioners in the world (and the only British woman), to be Certified to teach the traditional Ashtanga yoga method by Sri K Pattabhi Jois. She has learned the Primary, Intermediate, Advanced A and Advanced B Series directly from Guruji and Sharath (at the Krishna Pattabhi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore, India) and shares the Ashtanga system, internationally.

After randomly walking into an Ashtanga yoga class in London in the late 1990s, she began studying the Ashtanga system, daily before work. For over sixteen years she has studied for several months each year at KPJAYI in Mysore, practising under the guidance of revered guru Sri K Pattabhi Jois and his grandson Sharath Jois.

In 2006 she established and ran Triyoga Soho’s Ashtanga self-practice programme, teaching there for five years before moving to South India, to work on creating ASHTANGA NIRVRTA with Mahesh.

As well as being the resident yoga teacher at ASHTANGA NIRVRTA, Philippa also leads guest workshops at studios in India, Europe and on retreats worldwide. Her approach to sharing yoga asana (from beginners to more seasoned practitioners), is serious, yet light-hearted and joyful. Her emphasis is on good technique, safe alignment, the synchronisation of tristhana (breath, gaze points and movement) and passing on the exact method, as taught by Guruji.

Philippa’s dedicated passion for Ashtanga yoga, background as a trained dancer and experience as a qualified teacher (PGCEA), gives her an intuitive and sound understanding of bodies, yoga asanas, people and how they learn.